Active NPA guerrilla fronts now zero – AFP

MANILA, Philippines — Sustained military operations and the whole-of-nation approach toward ending the country’s insurgency problem have reportedly brought down the number of active New People’s Army (NPA) guerrilla fronts to zero.

The Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) boasted this accomplishment yesterday as it highlighted how it achieved its goals for 2023 while welcoming 2024 with a high public trust rating.

“As of December, there are no more active NPA guerrilla fronts. The continued focused military operations have neutralized high-value targets in the communist and local terrorist groups,” said Col. Xerxes Trinidad, chief of the AFP public affairs office.

Trinidad said the military again achieved a significant milestone by dismantling eight and weakening 14 NPA guerrilla fronts in 2023.

He said among the communist and terrorist leaders the military neutralized last year were Dionisio Macabalo, alias Muling or Kardo, who was secretary of the NPA’s North Central Mindanao Regional Committee, and Farahudin Pumbaya Pangalian, alias Abu Zacharia, said to be the emir of the Dawlah Islamiya-Philippines and Islamic State-East Asia.

“In 2023, the AFP was able to neutralize 1,399 members of communist and local terrorist groups. It seized 1,751 firearms through capture, confiscation, recovery or surrender,” Trinidad said.

As the insurgency problem nears its end, the AFP is shifting its focus to external defense operations.

“The AFP is focusing on awareness and security in the maritime domain. Throughout the year, the AFP conducted 28 rotation and reprovision operations and 820 maritime and air patrols in the West Philippine Sea,” Trinidad said.

The AFP cited its high satisfaction rating of +85 percent in a recent survey conducted by OCTA Research.